Stitch-removing machine



F. CHA-TEAUNEUF. STITCH REMOVING MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED DEC-30. 1918- v v 1,412,041 Patented p 11, 1922- 3 SHhEIS-SHEET I.

F. CHATEAUNEUF. STITCH REMOVING MACHINE. APPLICATION FILED 050.30, 1918.

' 3 SHEETSSHEET 2.

1 1 w A m n m P F. CHATEAUNEU F. STITCH REMOVING MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED DEC-30.1918.

Patented Apr. 11, 1922.

3 SHEEIS-SHEET 3.

UNITED STATES TION OF NEW JERSEY.

PATENT osricla.

' FRANK CHATEAUNEUF, F SWAJVIPSCOTT, MASSACHUSETTS, ASSIGNIOB, TO UNITED SHOE MACHINERY CORPORATION, OF PATERSON, NEW'. JERSEY A CORPORA- STITCH-REMOVING MACHINE.

Specification of Letters Patent. Patented Apr. 11, 1922- Appl ieation filed December 30, 1918. Serial No. 268,833,

I a' citizen of the United States, residing at Swampscott, in the county of Essex and State of Massachusetts, have invented certain Improvements in Stitch-Removing Machines, of which the following description,

in connection with the accompanying drawings, 1s a speclficatlon, like reference char actors on the drawings indicating like parts in the several figures.

This inventionrelates to machines for removing fasteners and is herein illustrated as embodied in a machine for removing the stitches which remain in the welt of a shoe after the sole has been cut from the welt.

In resoling shoes after the method now commonly employed it is customary to .cut the old sole from the welt and to sew a whole new sole in place. This cutting is done by running a knife between the sole and the welt thereby severing the thread and leaving in the welt the upper portions of the stitches. For convenience and to promote brevity these U-shaped' upper portions will be referred to simply as stitches. It is desirable that these stitches be removed since I otherwise they gradually work loose after the shoe has been worn and give it a frayed and unsightly appearance. To pull them out by hand tools is a long and laborious, operation; and the general object of the present invention is to provide a machine for performing this and similar operations.

According to one feature of the invention the work having the stitches therein is fed past a tool which engages them pro- 1 gressively. In the illustrative machine the work is fed intermittently and a stitch pulling tool in the form of a picker operates transversely of the direction of feed.

In a welt the bars of the stitches are usually more or less embedded in the top of the welt with the result that they 'may be engaged by'a pulling tool only with difficulty. To provide for these and similar conditions another feature of the invention raised workengaging face shaped to bend the work at the locality engaged towardthe pulling tool. 7

In order still'further to expose thebars of the stitches to the action of the pulling tool another feature of the invention com prises means acting upon the stitches to loosen them and produce aslackness in the bars thereof. In the illustrative machine this means takes the form of apair of rubbers or scrapers which vibrate toward and r Referring to the accompanying draw-f in s:- 7 v Figure 1 is a front elevation of. a machine m-which the present invention is embodied.

Fig. 2 1s a section on the line 2, 2of

Fig. 1, but without showing the heating pipe. r I

Fig. 3 is a section. on the line. of Fig.- 2 showingthe mounting of the hubs feeding and bendingimembersr of the 1 Y ,85. Fig. 4 1s a, perspectiveQof the feeding and bending members and their operating mechanism.

Fig. 5 isa perspective of the. -s crapers which. operate to loosen or rough up the stitches. 1

- Fig. 6 is a section on the line 6'6-0f Fig. 1, certain parts having beenomittedto show more clearly theholding members and theiroperating mechanism.

Fig. 7 is a fragmentary view onganenlarged scale showing more particularlythe path of the picker and a piece of the work. i Fig. 8 is a section on the line 88 of Fig. 1,a-nd- Fig. 9 is asection on the line 99 of Fig. 2 but with'the work being engaged-showing more particularly the relative positions of I the feeding and bending members, the scrap ers and the picker at one point in their cycle of movements.

Referring first to Figs. 7 and 9, the welt 100, from which the sole of the shoe has been cut, has embedded therein the stitches 200 which serve to fasten the welt to the sole. These stitches consist of substantially U- shaped pieces of waxed thread which have the general form of a staple, the legs being embedded in the welt and the bars lying on the top of the welt although. owing to oer tain operations which are commonly performed on the welt during the manufacture of the shoe, the bars are often more or less sunk into the welt. The welt is progressively fed by a lower feed member 11 and a forked upper feed member 13, the members being curved respectively convexly and con cavely so as to produce a bend in the welt. The welt thus bent to expose the bars of the stitches is fed along and comes to rest for a short interval below a claw or picker 15. During the feeding of the welt as well as during its interval of rest it is acted upon by the picker as well as by a pair of scrapers 17. The scrapers move toward and from each other substantially in the line of feed and operate to loosen the stitches by forming slack in the bars thereof somewhat as shown in l igure 9. The picker moves substantially in the path indicated by the dash-and-dot line and by the arrow in Figure '7, the teeth at the end of the picker engaging the bars and thereby exerting a pull upon the stitches to remove them. Owing to the fact that one leg of any given stitch may be more firmly held in the welt than the other it may happen that with'regard to some of the stitches only one leg will be completely freed from the welt, but except in such cases and in cases in which the bar has been greatly weakened or broken, the stitch will be removedentire. Vith this brief outline of the mode of operation of the machine, a detailed description of its parts will now be given.

Referring more particularly to Figures 1, 2, 3 and 4 the hubs of the upper feeding members and of the lever 35 by which the .lower feedin member 11 is carried are mounted upon a sleeve 19 which is loosely mounted for sliding movement upon an oscillatory shaft 21. The oscillation of the shaft 21 has nothing to do with the feed members but with the guiding of the picker as will presently appear. The hub of the member 13 is fastened to the sleeve 19 by a screw 23 the stem of which engages a groove in the sleeve. The member 13 and the sleeve 19 are thus rigidly connected. In order to pre vent angular movement of the member 13 the hub thereof has a downward extension having at its lower end a yoke the flat inner fa cos of the arms of which embrace aIfiattened guide member 25, the stem of said member being threaded into the frame of the machine.

feed member 13 and sleeve 19 forward and back on the shaft 21, the track 29 being shaped so that the forward movement is slow and the backward or return movement rapid. The lower feed; member 11 is pivoted at 33 to the lever 35 the hub of which, as has been stated, is mounted upon the sleeve 19. This hub is angularly'movable o'n'the sleeve and is rocked by a roll 37 which is mounted at the rear end of the lever 35 and runs in a suitably shaped track 39 formed in the side of the cam member 81. A spring 4-1, which is coiled about the pivot has its free ends engaging respectively the under side of the lever 35 and the upper side of the tail of the feed member 11; and a set screw 43 is threaded into the lever '35 and extends through an enlarged hole in the tail. The spring tends to swing the lower feed member 11 in a clockwise direction about the pivot 33, a nut 45 limiting the extent of this movement, the spring ensuring that the work shall be gripped yieldingly. hen power is withdrawn from the machine, the parts come to restin the position shown with the feed members open to receive the work and lo-' cated in position to start one of their intermittent feed movements. Rotationof the cam member 31 closes the feed members upon the work so as to bend it as has been described, moves the feed members forward (to the left as viewed in Figs. 1 and 3) holds them stationary for aninterval, opens them and finally returns them to the position shown, this cycle of movements being repeated as long as power is applied to the cam member 31. During the backward movement of the feed members the work is held by a pair of grippers which will ently be described. 7

' The cam member 31 is fast to a rotatable shaft 4:? having fast thereto a near 48 which meshes with a pinion (see 1 and 6) fast to a rotary shaft 51. The shaft 4:7 is the main driving shaft and is operated through clutch from a continuously driven pulley 53. This clutch, which is shown in F 1 and 6, 1S controlled by a lever 55 pivoted at 57 to a treadle-rod 59 and to the frame of the machine at 61, the rod being connected with a treadle 63. A. spring 65 tends always to hold the lever in the position shown with the clutch pin 6'? with drawn from engagement with the pulley 53 and the parts of the machine at rest in position to receive and feed forward a piece of work. Depression of the t-readle starts the machine and the machine continues to run until the treadle is released and the clutch pin 67 has been engaged and withdrawn by the member 69. Inasmuch as the details of the clutch mechanism formno part of the present 1nvention and any suitable mechanism which will start and stop the machine in the desired manner maybe employed, the illustrated construction will not be further described.

Referring now more particularly to Fig-' ure 8, the picker 15 is pivoted at'71 to a lug on an eccentric rod 7 3 having at oneend an eccentric strap which encircles an eccentric 75 on the shaft 51. The eccentric rod is pivoted at 77 between spaced upstanding lugs formed on the upper end of a radius arm 79 the hub of which is fastened to the oscillatory shaft 21 by a pin 78 and nut 80. :The effect of this construction is to move the operative part of the picker in a closed path which is indicated approximately-by the dotand-dash line in Fig. 7 the teeth of the picker being brought down upon the welt and then drawn outwardly (with respect to the welt). and upwardly. In order to ensure that this raking'or clawing movement may take place without breakage and to provide for irregularities in the surface of the welt, a coiled spring 81, which encircles the pivot 71 "engages with its free ends re spectively the tail of the picker and the eccentric rod 73. A set screw 84 the stem of which passes through an enlarged hole in the tail of the picker is threaded into the eccentric rod' to limit the extent of downward movement of the picker which is due to the spring. The work is thus engaged yieldingly by the picker. 7

As has been stated, means is provided for gripping the work and holding it during the backward or return movement of the feed members, this means being shown best in Fig. 6; The hub of the upper gripping or holding 'member 83 is loosely mounted upon the shaft 21 and has a depending por-v tion provided with a fork, said'fork embracing a flattened rod 85 to prevent the member 83 from moving angularly." This member is in, fact stationary being held from movement longitudinally of therod by engagement of its hub at one end with a fixed portion of the machine and at the other end with the hub of the lever 87 to which the lower gripper89 is pivoted at l91.

4 Afcoiled s rin 93 encircles the in' and ene gages with its free ends respectivelythe tail of the gripper and the lever. Aset screw 95, which passes through an enlarged hole in the tail, is threaded at its upper end into thelever and has threaded on its lower-end nuts 97 which limit the extent of clockwise movement of the gripper about the pivot 91.-

The lever 87 carries at the. end remote from the gripper a roll99 which runs in a cam track 101 cut in the side of the gear 48,,the shape of the track being such that the grippers are-closed upon the work when the feed "members have reached their forward posi-' tion and remain closed while the feed membersrelease their hold and'return to their initial position. Referring now more particularly to Figs. 5 and 9, then'iechanism for roughing up or loosening the stitches will be described. The scraping members 17 except that their stems are oppositely curved, are substantially alike as are their mountings; and consequently and the arm 105. A screw 111, the stem of which passes through an enlarged hole-in the tail of the scraper, is threaded into the arm and limits the extent to which the scraper'may be removed by the spring. This 7 construction is similar to that which has;

been described in connection with the feed members, the picker and the grippers, its

purpose being to'permit the scrapers to en age the work yieldingly. Fastenedin a boss which projects from one side of the hub of the arm 105 is. a pin 113 having a spherical head which is receivedin a cylindrical. bore at the lower end of an arm 115, said arm being integral with a sleeve 117 whichis fast to a rock shaft 119. The connections from the left-hand scraper 17 to the sleeve 117 are practically like those which have just'been described. No detailed'description of them will be given but the corresponding parts have been given reference. numerals-which are like those of the right-hand partser cept thatthey have "been increased in each case by one hundred. With this con; i

struction, rocking of the shaft 119 willcau'se the scraping members 17'alternately to approach and recede' fromeach'othenfiIn' or der t-o rockjthe shaftpthe sleevellihasaa rearwardly extending arm 121 at thei-e'ndof which is a fork 123 (Fig. 8) which embraces a block 1525. the block being mounted upon an eccentric 127 which is fast tothe-shaftj, V 51. Rotation of this shaft thus carises-vibra 7 tion of the scrapers in the manner-which has-- been described] The thread used in attaching a welt'to-a shoe is waxed inorder to hold the stitches more firmly; and consequently, when the stitches are tobe pulled out it is desirable that the be softened. To this end a steam delivery pipe 129 (sec-Figure 1) has a nozzle located to direct a jet of steam upon the upper feed member 13 and upon the portion of the welt which is bent by feedmembers. This pipe leads from'a valve casing 131 into which steam is led from any suitable source through an inlet pipe 133.

A valve 138 vertically slidable in a guide 140 in the casing controls the flow of steam to the nozzle 1, said valve being suitably CODUQItQCl with the upper end of a link 141, the lower end of which is pivoted at 143 to one end of the lever 55. In the position shown the valve is closed, but when the treadle 63 is depressed to start the machine, the valve is opened to permit steam to be delivered through the nozzle of the delivery pipe 129.

In the operation of the machine, one end of the welt is placed between the open feed members and the treadle then depressed and held down, the shoe being held and guided by theoperator during the ensuing feeding movements.- The cams of the machine are so shaped and the relation of parts such that during the slow forward movement of the feed members the scrapers 1'7 and the picker 15 make several complete cycles of movements. The scrapers exert a series of pinching movements, so to speak, upon the stitches lengthwise of the bars thereof and tend to produce in any given bar a small loop somewhat as shown in Figure 9; and the picker thereupon engages this loop and pulls the stitch. During all the time that the treadle is held down the valve 138 is open, and steam is flowing from the nozzle of the delivery pipe 129 to heat the feed members and the welt and thereby soften the wax and facilitate the operation of the scrapers and picker.

Although the invention has been set forth as embodied in a particular machine, it should be understood that the invention is not limited in the scope of its application to the particular machine which has been shown and described.

Having thus described the invention, what is claimed as new and desired to be secured by Letters Patent of the United States is 1. A machine for operating upon work having a series of stitches therein, having, in combination, means for feeding the work into position to be operated upon, and means for pulling the stitches successively.

2. A machine for operating upon work having a series of stitches therein, having, in combination, means for feeding the work intermittently into position to be operated upon, and means for pulling the stitches successively.

3. A machine for operating upon work having stitches therein, having, in combination, means for feeding the work, means for progressively bending the work, and means operating upon the bent portion of the work to pull the stitches. V

4. A machine for operating upon work having stitches therein, having, in combination, means for feeding the work, means for loosening the exposed portions of the stitches. and means operating to pull the loosened stitches.

5. A machine for operating upon work having a series of stitches therein, having, in combination, a picker, means for feeding the work past the picker, and means for causing the picker to engage the stitches successively to pull them out.

6. A machine for operating upon work having stitches therein, having, in combination, a picker, means for feeding the work past the picker, mechanism for causing the work progressively to assume a curved formation adjacent to the picker as it is fed therepast, and means for causing the picker to engage the stitches to pull them out.

71A machine for operating upon work having stitches therein, having, in combination, a picker, means for feeding the work past the picker, means for scraping the stitches to loosen them and means for caus- 7 ing the picker to engage the loosened stitches to pull them out. i

8.. A machine for operating upon work having a series of stitches therein, having, in combination, means for feeding the work progressively into position to be operated upon, and means for raking out the stitches successively.

9. A machine for operating upon work having fasteners therein, having, in combination, a picker, means for bending the work and presenting the bent portion in operative relation to the picker, and means for causing the picker to pull out the fasteners.

10. A machine for operating upon work having fasteners therein, having, in combination, a movable picker, mechanism for loosening a fastener and causing a portion thereof to extend across the path of movement of the picker, and means for causing the picker to exert a pull on the loosened fastener.

11. A machine for operating upon work having fasteners therein, having, in comhination, a picker, means for feeding the work past the picker, means for progressively bending the work as it is presented in operative relation to the picker, and means for causing the picker to pull out the fasteners.

12. A machine for operating upon work having fasteners therein, having,.in combination,- a picker, means for feeding the work past the picker, means for progressively bending the workas it is presented in operative relation to the. picker, means for loosening the fasteners, and means for causing the picker to pull out the loosened fasteners.

13. A machine for operating upon work having a series of U-shaped fasteners with the legs thereof embedded in the Work, having in combination, a picker, means for supporting the work in operative relation thereto, and means for causing the picker to ento pull them out.

' ,'15. A machine for operating upon work having U-shaped fasteners with the legs thereof embedded in thework, having in combination, a picker,'-means for supporting sively the work in operative relation thereto,inea1is for loosening the fasteners, and means for causing the picker to engage the bars of th loosened fasteners. I 7 1 16. A machine for operating I upon work having a series of fasteners therein, .having, in combination, a fastener extracting device, means for feeding the work pastthe device, and means for causing said device succesto extract the fasteners of the series as the work is fed. w 1

'17. A machine for operating upon work having-U-shaped fasteners therein, having, in combination, a picker, means for feeding the work past the picker, means for loosening the fasteners, and means for causing the picker to exert a pull upon the loosened.

fasteners. v p 18. A machlne for pulling stitches from a piece of work, having in comblnation', a pulling tool constructed to engagethe bar of a from a piece of work, having in combination,

a pulling tool, a support for the work, and

means for drawing the tool across a portion of the work adjacent the stitches to engage and pull them, said drawing movement of the toolhaving a component in a direction perpendicular to the surface of the work.

20. A machine for pulling stitches from a piece of work, having in combination, a'pulling tool, a pair offeed members having respectively a reentrant and a raised workenga-ging face, means for causing the members to engage and feed the work past the tool, and means for causing the tool to pull the stitches.

21. A machine for pulling stitches from a piece of work, having in combination, .rpulling tool, a pair of membershaving respectively a re-entrant and a raised work-engaging face, means for causing the members to engage and bend the work'in the locality of the stitches, and means for causing the tool to act upon the work while it is thus bent.

A machine for pulling stitches from a piece of work, having, in combination, a pulllng tool,'a pair of feed members, means for causing the members to feed the work' past the tool, and means for causing the tool to move in an orbitalpath the plane of which lies atv an angle to the direction of feed of the work. V

23. Amachine for pulling stitches from a piece of work, having, in combination, a

pulling tool, means for feeding the work past the tool, a pair of'members for scrap{ 1 ing the stitches to loosen them, and means for causing the scraping members to -move toward-and from each'other 1n the direction 'ofthe length of the stitches.

24. A machine for pulling stitchesiromapiece of work, having, inqcombination, a

pulling tool, means for feeding the work pastthe tool, a pairgof members forscraping the stitches to loosen them, means for causing the" scraping members to move toward-and from each other, andmeans for causing the pulling tool to operate upon the work-between the scraping members.

25.,A machine for removing the stitches which remain in the welt of a shoe after the sole has been cut from the welt,-.having, in combination, a fpicker, I means forfeeding the welt :past the picker and for progressively bending. successive portions of it'toward the topull the stitches.

26. A machine ror'removing the stitches which remain in the welt of a shoe after the sole has been cut from the welt, having, in 'combmation, a picker, means for feedlng the welt past the picker and for progressively bending successive portions of. it toward the picker, means for loosening the stitches, and

means for operating the picker to pull the loosened stitchesf "27. A machinefor removing the stitches wnichremain in the welt of a shoe after the sole has been cut from the welt, having, in

cembination, a picker, means for feeding the welt past the picker and for progressively bending successive portions of it toward the picker, and means for drawing the picker across the welt. v V

28. A machine for pulling a series of fasteners froma piece of work having, in coming in a path transverse tothe direction of movement of the scraper to pull the loosened stitches. 5

30. A machine for operating upon work having 'U-shaped fasteners with the legs 95 picker, and means for operating the picker thereof embedded in the Work, having in combination, a picker, a support for positioning the work in operative relation thereto, a member co-operating with the support for bending the work to expose the bars of the fasteners, and mechanism for operating the picker to engage the bars of the fasteners to pull them out.

31. A machine for operating upon work having U-shap'ed fasteners with the legs thereof embedded in the work, having, in combination, a picker, a support for positi'oning the work in operative relation thereto, a scraper for loosening the fasteners, and mechanism for causing the picker to engage and pull the loosened fasteners.

32. A machine for pulling stitches from a piece of work, having, in combination, a pair of members having respectively a concave and a convex work engaging face, mechanism for causing the members to engage and bend the work in the locality of the stitches, and a pulling tool constructed and arranged to engage and pull the stitches While the Work is thus bent.

33. A machine for pulling stitches from a piece of work having, in combination, pulling tool, mechanism for feeding the 7 work past the tool, a pair of scrapers, mechanism to move the scrapers toward and from each other to loosen the stitches, and mechanism for moving the pulling tool to operate upon the work between the scrapers.

34. A machine for removing the stitches which remain in the welt of a shoe after the sole has been cut from the welt, having, in combination, means to engage the welt, and means to, remove the stitches therefrom.

35. A machine for pulling from a piece of Work the threads left by cutting a series of stitches, having, in combination, means to raise the threads above the level of the work, and means to engage them while so raised and pull them from the Work.

36. A machine for removing cut stitches from a shoe, having, in combination, a support for a shoe from which stitches are to be removed, and means for removing the stitches.

37. A machine for pulling stitches having, in combination, a stitch-removing memher, and linked levers to move said member in a path following a closed curve, to impart a hooking movement to the member in pulling stitches.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification.

FRANK CHATEAUNEUF; 

